Albie Hecht Movies

Inocente Izucar is a teenage girl who likes rabbits, root beer floats, high-top sneakers, and especially painting. Inocente's artwork, using bright colors, bold patterns, and pop-art-influenced imagery, has already earned her acclaim as a talent to watch from the creative community in New York, where she lives, but she's a long way from being a typical teenage prodigy. Inocente's parents came to the United States illegally, her father was deported after physically abusing her mother, she and her family have been homeless most of her life, and she once had to urge her mother away from the railing of a bridge when she was convinced it was better to jump than to go on living. Documentary filmmakers Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine discovered Inocente Izucar while working on a project about homeless youth in New York City, and in Inocente they look into the life of a young woman determined to use her talents to make something of herself despite the odds. Inocente received a 2013 Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Short Subject. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

An American astronaut believing himself to be the first person ever to set foot on Planet 51 gets the shock of his life in this animated adventure comedy featuring the voices of Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, John Cleese, and Gary Oldman. Captain Charles "Chuck" Baker (voice of Johnson) was on a mission to boldly go where no man had gone before, a remote celestial body dubbed Planet 51. The scientific community had surmised that Planet 51 was uninhabited, so when Captain Baker steps out of his spacecraft to discover a race of tiny green people living in quaint communities reminiscent of 1950s America, he can't quite believe his eyes. Unfortunately, the tiny extraterrestrials suffer from a universal fear that their utopian community will one day be overrun by alien invaders...just like the extra-large astronaut who now stands before them. As General Grawl (voice of Gary Oldman) and Professor Kipple (voice of John Cleese) attempt to capture the peaceful visitor so they can dissect him and learn more about his anatomy, Captain Baker must count on his robot companion, "Rover," and his new friend, Lem, in order to navigate this strange new world and find a way back home before it's too late. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Mark S. Waters's adaptation of the popular fantasy novels The Spiderwick Chronicles tells the tale of the Graces, a family who must adapt to their new strange surroundings. As the story begins, twin brothers Jared and Simon, along with their sister Mallory and their mother, move away from the big city to a mansion owned by their uncle. When a series of strange happenings suggest that Jared may be causing a number of disturbances, the siblings band together to figure out what is going on. Soon they discover the magical history of the property. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

The best-selling series of subversive children's books from author Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler) come to the screen in this black comedy for the whole family (and how often do you get to see one of those?). The Baudelaire siblings -- gadget freak Violet (Emily Browning), bookworm Klaus (Liam Aiken), and baby Sunny (Kara Hoffman and Shelby Hoffman) -- were living a fairy-tale existence with their parents until they died in a fire that destroyed the family home. With few close relatives and a large fortune the children won't inherit until they reach adulthood, the Baudelaire children are left in the care of the peculiar Count Olaf (Jim Carrey), an out-of-work actor who would love nothing more than to get his hands on the kids' money. It doesn't take long for the children to figure out that Count Olaf is up to no good, and they try to steer clear of his various murderous schemes with the help of wildly paranoid Aunt Josephine (Meryl Streep) and snake-fancying Uncle Monty (Billy Connolly). Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events also features Catherine O'Hara, Timothy Spall, Cedric the Entertainer, and Luis Guzman; Jude Law narrates in the guise of author Snicket. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Two of the most popular animated series on the children's cable network Nickelodeon get wrapped up in one big-screen package in this comedy-adventure, featuring the characters from Rugrats and The Wild Thornberrys. Drew and Didi Pickles (voices of Michael Bell and Melanie Chartoff) decide to take a special vacation with their children, Tommy (voice of Elizabeth Daily) and Angelica (voice of Cheryl Chase), with their friends (both grown-ups and toddlers) coming along for the ride. However, the ship Drew has chartered isn't especially seaworthy, and their party ends up stranded on an uncharted island in the Pacific. The kids figure the day is saved when they discover that famous explorer and television personality Sir Nigel Tornberry (voice of Tim Curry) is also on the island with his family, but after he gets a world-class knock on the head from a coconut, Nigel's upper intellectual register gets knocked out of commission. The Rugrats are then forced to turn to Nigel's daughter, Eliza (voice of Lacey Chabert), who not only knows the wilds, but can talk to animals, which comes as quite a surprise to Spike (voice of Bruce Willis), the Pickles' family pooch. Rugrats Go Wild also features the voice talents of LL Cool J, Cree Summer, Nancy Cartwright, Jack Riley, and Flea. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The Nickelodeon cartoon series The Wild Thornberrys gets its first feature-length animated film, directed by show creator Cathy Malkasian with a screenplay by Kate Boutilier (writer of Nickelodeon's Rugrats in Paris). The main character is 12-year-old Eliza Thornberry (voice of Lacey Chabert), a braces-and-glasses-wearing eccentric girl in an adventurous family of travelers. Due to an interaction with a shaman, she has been granted the special power of communication with animals, as long as she promises not to tell anyone about it. Her powers are challenged when her parents, Nigel (voice of Tim Curry) and Marianne (voice of Jodi Carlisle), decide to take the family on an African safari to make a nature documentary. Also along for the trip is snobby sister Debbie (voice of Danielle Harris), feral youngster Donnie (voice of Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers), and pet chimpanzee Darwin (voice of Tom Kane). After her new Cheetah cub friend is stolen by poachers, Eliza is determined to get involved. However, the stuffy Thornberry grandparents get in the way by sending her to boarding school. It's up to Eliza and Darwin to defeat the poachers and save the cub. Also featuring the voice talents of Brenda Blethyn and Lynn Redgrave. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

It's the day children dream of and parents dread: a sudden snowstorm causes the cancellation of school, giving kids a day off and their folks one more thing to worry about. Snow Day traces what happens in an upstate New York town when a thick layer of white stuff forces local schools to take a day off. Fifteen-year-old Hal Brandston (Mark Webber) is crazy about Claire Bonner (Emmanuelle Chriqui), the prettiest girl in his tenth-grade class, who already has a boyfriend -- the class jock and BMOC. Will the magical powers of Snow Day give Hal a chance to win her away? Meanwhile, Hal's ten-year-old sister, Natalie (Zena Grey), is having so much fun with Snow Day that she doesn't want it to end, so she makes sure the Snow Plow Man (Chris Elliott) can't get the roads cleared before morning. Four-year-old Randy Brandston (Connor Matheus) is all cranked up and ready to enjoy life on a day with no day care -- bad news for his mom, Laura (Jean Smart), a businesswoman who has to close an important deal. And weather is a sore spot with father Tom Brandston (Chevy Chase); as the meteorologist at the lowest-rated TV station in town, he is trying in vain to get folks to pay attention to what he has to say about snow, rain, and the elements. Snow Day was produced by Nickelodeon Movies, the feature-film branch of the children's television network, and its eclectic cast also includes Pam Grier, John Schneider, and Iggy Pop. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This made-for-cable thriller-chiller was filmed in Ohio, where most of the story takes place. A pair of young brothers, Andrew (Jase Blankfort) and Carl (Trey Rogers), cannot get their fill of the spooky ghost stories told by local undertaker Mr. Bennett (Frank Langella). The boys are particularly fascinated by the legend of a brace of long-deceased Siamese twins -- one good, one evil -- who were literally torn apart at the time of their funeral. Intending to learn more about the twins, the adventurous Andrew conducts a séance, only to get more than he bargains for when he releases a horrifying demon, which promptly wreaks havoc upon the community. It is up to Andrew's mild, unassuming brother Carl to undo the damage -- if it isn't already too late. Cry Baby Lane made its Nickelodeon TV debut on October 28, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi